Air Force Budget Seeks to Buy More F-35s, Reduce Ranks

The 2014 budget request from the Air Force includes funding for 19 additional F-35 fighter jets and cuts active-duty personnel by 1,900 airmen, according to an article in DoD Buzz.

The Air Force is already the most top-heavy branch in a military that for years has been cutting enlisted personnel while increasing top officers, a phenomenon known as “brass creep.” The Project On Government Oversight has long been a critic of both brass creep and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

From the article:The spending plan would keep “on track” the Air Force’s top three investments: the F-35A, KC-46A tanker being developed by Boeing Co. and long-range strike bomber, according to budget materials. The service wants to buy 19 more F-35s, part of a military-wide effort to buy 29 of the aircraft for $8.4 billion. (The Marine Corps wants six and the Navy wants four.)

The base budget for the Air Force would increase by $4.65 billion to $144 billion, the only increase for any service. The budget excludes funding for the war in Afghanistan.